


Something About The Summer

by BaileyB00



Category: Stray Kids (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Summer Camp, Cute, Fluff, Light Angst, M/M, Summer, Summer Romance, Summer Vacation, like for .5 seconds, minsung are cute as hell
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-26
Updated: 2019-07-26
Packaged: 2020-07-20 05:55:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,049
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19987213
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BaileyB00/pseuds/BaileyB00
Summary: For four years, Jisung and Minho have spent every summer together—but only the summer. They're from two completely different worlds, and their paths would never have crossed in the real world, in their real lives. And yet, they still spend every waking moment of those summer months with each other.There's just something about the summer.





	Something About The Summer

**Author's Note:**

> since summer is at its end, here's this mess

The first summer they saw each other, they were fifteen years old.

Jisung's parents sent him to summer camp, much to his disappointment—why should he have to spend his entire summer surrounded by strangers when he could be spending it with his best friend? But they wouldn't hear a word of it; they claimed it would be good for him to “spend some quality time in nature.”

Needless to say, Jisung disagreed.

He spent his first few days at summer camp in solitude—nearly everyone else there had already attended in years past, so they were all already friends with each other. As a result, for a time, Jisung spent his days alone.

But only for a short while.

Nearly a week after summer began, a week after everyone including Jisung had fallen into a routine at camp, a new boy arrived and was placed in Jisung's group. Since the only empty bed in the cabin was the one next to Jisung's, it was given to the new boy immediately.

He seemed a little strange, if Jisung was being honest—he rarely, if ever, spoke to anyone; he preferred to opt out of most of the activities; and at mealtimes, he sat as far away from the other kids as he possibly could. Jisung thought the boy was odd… until he realized that he was just like him.

The next day after this strange revelation occurred to Jisung, he decided to sit with the new boy at lunch. As he approached the boy sitting at a table all alone, he began to feel nervous, although he didn't understand why.

“Hi,” Jisung said to him. “Is it okay I sit with you?”

The boy looked up from the book he was reading and stared at Jisung for a few very long seconds before nodding. Jisung sat, relieved, and introduced himself.

“I know,” the boy said in response. When Jisung quirked an eyebrow at him, he explained. “I pay attention. I'm Minho,” he said.

“Minho…” Jisung said thoughtfully. “How come you came here later than everyone else?”

“I didn't exactly want to come,” Minho said. “If it wasn't obvious. My parents made me.”

“Mine, too,” Jisung said. “They think I don't spend enough time outside.”

“Mine just didn't want to have to deal with me all the time since I'm not in school,” Minho responded candidly. “But just because I'm here doesn't mean I have to like it.”

“I kinda hate it here, too,” Jisung replied. “The food is weird and the kids are weirder. Especially you.”

“Me? Weird?” Minho asked, feigning hurt. “Isn't it normal to hate everyone and everything around you?”

Jisung laughed. “Hey, I've got an idea,” he said.

“Let's hear it, then.”

“Why don't we hate being at summer camp… together?”

Instantly, Minho’s smile disappeared, and Jisung worried he'd overstepped some kind of invisible line, and that he might have ruined his only friendship at this camp before it even started. Minho studied him for a few moments longer before saying, “I think that's a great idea.”

And that's exactly what they did. From that moment on, Minho and Jisung were an inseparable duo. They did everything together. They even figured out how to sneak away from the more boring summer camp activities just so they could spend more time with each other. They talked about everything that came to their minds, because they both knew the other would listen. Over the course of one summer, they grew closer than Jisung could've ever imagined possible.

And then it was over.

“You know,” Jisung said to Minho as the two of them were packing their things on the last day of summer camp, “this was a pretty good summer. Don't you think?”

“Yeah.” Minho shoved the last of his things into his bag; he seemed upset. Jisung zipped his own bag shut and walked over to Minho. “Are you okay?” he asked.

Minho nodded. “I guess I'm just… not ready to leave,” he said. Jisung nodded, but before he could reply, the senior counselor of their group announced it was time for them to load the bus back to the city—their time at summer camp was officially over.

They boarded the bus in silence, sat next to each other without speaking. When they got to the bus station where everyone's parents would be picking them up, Jisung hugged Minho goodbye.

“I'm gonna miss you,” he said.

“I'll miss you too, Jisungie,” Minho whispered.

Both of them startled at the sound of a voice calling Jisung's name. Jisung looked around to find the source of the voice—it was his mother, there to take him home.

“I gotta go,” Jisung said. “I'll see you next summer?” Jisung felt Minho nod in reply; he didn't let go until he heard his mother chiding him for dawdling.

He didn't want to think about the sad expression he saw on Minho's face before he left.

❃❃❃❃❃❃❃❃❃❃

The second time, Jisung was nervous.

What if Minho didn't remember him? What if he'd gone back to his home in the city and hadn't thought about seeing Jisung again the way Jisung thought about seeing Minho? What if he'd realized that he didn't really want to be Jisung's friend?

Jisung was thinking about all this as he drug his bag into the cabin, where he threw everything onto his assigned bed. He still hadn't seen Minho.

He wasn't on the bus. What if he wasn't coming this summer? What if—

“Jisung!”

He barely had time to turn around before Minho tackled him in a hug, knocking both of them backwards onto Jisung's bed. “I missed you, Sungie,” Minho said with a grin.

“That's great,” Jisung said with a groan. “Struggling to breathe here.”

Minho laughed and sat up, sitting cross-legged on the bed; Jisung did the same. “How did you get here?” he asked. “I didn't see you on the bus.”

Minho’s expression darkened slightly. “I, um, my parents dropped me off,” he said. “They, uh, they preferred to drop me off early than wait around for me to ride the bus.”

“Alright,” Jisung said, his nerves not exactly calmed, but he knew that since Minho was here, everything would be okay.

The two of them fell into their routine from the previous summer almost instantly; it was as if they had never been apart. Jisung loved the time he spent with Minho. Every moment they were together felt far more concrete, solid, _real,_ than anything else in Jisung's life.

And just like the previous summer, it came to an end far too soon.

On the night before the campers would return to the city, the activities coordinators decided to have a bonfire, to which everyone was invited. Jisung was on his way out the door of his cabin when Minho yanked him away from the where the bonfire would be taking place, intertwining their arms and guiding him in the opposite direction.

“And just where do you think you're going?” Minho asked him. “It's our last night together, I'm not about to let you spend your time with anyone else.”

Jisung rolled his eyes. “As if there's anyone else I'd rather be with,” he said with a smile. “Where are we going, exactly?”

“The beach,” Minho replied simply.

It was then Jisung noticed Minho had two beach towels slung over his shoulder. “We're not going swimming, if that's what you're thinking,” Minho said. “I figured we could just… hang out. Look at the stars.”

Jisung smiled. “Sounds perfect.”

They reached the now-empty beach; Minho spread both towels out next to each other and stretched out on his back on one, gesturing for Jisung to do the same. He happily did so, pressing flush against Minho's side.

The two of them were quiet for a long while; it was Jisung who finally broke the silence. “I can't believe tomorrow's already the last day,” he said.

“Yeah,” Minho replied, sounding almost forlorn. “Me too. I'm… not really ready to leave.”

“Me neither.” Jisung turned to look at Minho. “I'm gonna miss you,” he said.

“I'm gonna miss you too, Jisungie,” Minho whispered. “Probably more this time than last time.”

“Minho…” Jisung said. “We don't have to, you know, not talk to each other when summer’s over. I could give you my phone number or something.” Jisung's own eyes lit up at the idea. “Then we could talk to each other all the time! It's perfect.”

“Jisungie, I—” Minho but his lip, as if holding something back, and paused. “Sure,” he said finally. “Why not.”

Jisung squealed and pressed the side of his face to Minho’s shoulder. “I'm so excited,” he said with a wide grin.

And Minho could only smile. He kept smiling the next morning when Jisung scribbled his phone number down on a piece of paper and shoved it into his hands. Throughout the entire exchange, Minho said nothing; he just kept the weak smile plastered on his face.

He didn't know how to tell Jisung the truth.

❃❃❃❃❃❃❃❃❃❃

It was the third summer, and Minho had never bothered to contact Jisung once. He was annoyed, and quite frankly, a bit hurt. He'd spent the _entire year—_ all throughout the fall, winter, and spring months waiting to hear from Minho.

But he never did.

Jisung had no idea what to think. Did their friendship mean that little to Minho? Just the thought that Minho could possibly have been tricking him into being his friend this entire time made Jisung sick to his stomach. He didn't bother looking for Minho at the bus station, and when the bus took off toward summer camp, Jisung did his best to tell himself he didn't care that he still hadn't seen him.

Of course, all that went out the window when he walked into the cabin to find Minho sitting on his bed, causing him to promptly burst into tears.

Minho immediately jumped up and wrapped his arms around Jisung, who sobbed into his shoulder. “Jisungie, shh, it's okay,” Minho said, stroking Jisung's hair comfortingly. “What's wrong?”

“Y-you didn't talk to m-me,” Jisung wailed. “You s-said you w-would.”

Minho stiffened. “I’m sorry, Jisung,” he said.

Jisung sniffed. “Why would you say you were going to talk to me and then just not do it?” he asked; Minho's heart ached at how sad Jisung looked.

“I just—I couldn't,” Minho said. “I know it's a shitty thing to do. Believe me. I felt so bad every day. But…” He trailed off.

“But what?”

“It's my parents,” Minho said. “They hate the fact that I have friends, so they do their best to make sure I have as few as possible. They check my phone all the time. If they saw your number in there… it wouldn't have been good. Then I really wouldn't have been able to talk to you. Maybe… maybe ever. They might not have let me come back here if they knew I was making friends at camp. So it's really better _—oof.”_

Minho was cut off by Jisung squeezing him in a tight hug, effectively knocking the wind out of him. Jisung buried his face in Minho's neck. “I'm sorry you have to deal with that,” he whispered. “And I'm sorry for being angry with you. If I had known…”

“You couldn't have,” Minho said, hugging Jisung back. “It's okay, Jisungie. I'm not going anywhere.”

While they spent every day that summer doing as they always had, something about it all felt different to Jisung. Knowing that Minho had to go back to people who clearly cared very little about him when he left at the end of summer left Jisung with an ache in his chest. He wanted nothing more than to hold Minho and promise him that everything would be okay as long as they were together.

The last day was especially hard. Jisung had never felt closer to Minho, or to anyone, really, than he did after that summer.

“Don't cry, Jisungie,” Minho said as they were packing their things.

“I'm not,” Jisung said, crying.

“What if I told you I had some good news?”

Jisung wiped his eyes. “I'm listening.”

Minho grinned. “Remember how I got here before you this summer? Before all the bus kids?”

“Yeah,” Jisung replied, “why?”

“Well,” Minho said, “did you ever wonder how that happened?”

“I just figured you got dropped off early like last summer.”

“And there, my dear Jisungie, is where you are wrong,” Minho said. “I drove myself.”

Jisung's jaw dropped. “You have a _car?”_

“I've been saving up for a long time,” Minho answered. “So,” he said, putting an arm around Jisung's shoulders, “want a ride home?”

“You bet your ass I do!” Jisung exclaimed, his previous tears long forgotten. “Holy shit, Minho, that's so cool! How did you manage to keep that a secret all summer long?”

“I have my ways,” Minho said with a smirk. “Let's get out of here, yeah?”

Jisung smiled. “Yeah.”

They packed their things into Minho's car, and before Jisung knew it, they were driving away together towards the city. His heart was soaring. He couldn't stop smiling, not when he could feel the wind in his hair from the open window, not when Minho was singing loudly to every song on the radio. It had been a long time since Jisung was this happy.

Minho drove Jisung to the bus station, where his parents would be waiting for him. Minho parked the car and turned it off, ready to get out and help Jisung carry his things, but Jisung didn't move; he just sat there, staring at Minho.

“What is it, Jisungie?” Minho whispered.

Jisung bit his lip. “Same as always,” he replied, equally as quietly. “I'm gonna miss you.” He leaned over and, without even thinking about what he was doing, kissed Minho softly on the lips. “Don't forget about me.”

“I could never,” Minho said, his face flushed a brighter shade of red than Jisung would've thought possible. “Do you—um, can I help you carry your stuff? Or I could just walk you to—”

“No,” Jisung said. “I want to remember this moment. When I think of the last time I saw you, I want to think of this. Don't you?”

By way of answering, Minho leaned over and kissed Jisung's cheek. “Yeah,” he said. “I do. I'll see you next summer, Jisungie.”

Jisung smiled. “See you next summer.”

❃❃❃❃❃❃❃❃❃❃

The fourth summer, they never made it to camp.

Jisung was at the bus station when he found Minho sitting on a bench, and if he was being honest, he looked terrible. His hair was disheveled, his clothes were rumpled, and his eyes were puffy, as if he'd been crying.

“Minho?” Jisung asked, sitting down next to him. “Are you okay?”

“No,” Minho said. “We're getting out of here. We're not going to that stupid summer camp. We're old enough to be able to do whatever the hell we want.”

“Okay,” Jisung said, a little cautiously. “Did something happen at home? I'm all for going somewhere other than summer camp, but you don't normally act this way.”

“I'm fine, I'm just…” he trailed off. “I need to get out of here, if only for the summer. I've graduated, I can leave whenever I want to now. But for this…” He met Jisung's eyes. “I want you to be with me.”

Jisung smiled. “Of course I'll go with you, dummy. Where are we going?”

It was Minho's turn to smile. “I was thinking of a road trip,” he said, “to the beach. As long as it's one far away from the camp’s beach.”

Jisung's eyes lit up. “I've always wanted to go on a road trip,” he said enthusiastically. “We could go north. Through the city. Then we could find some beaches where they've never even heard of that godforsaken summer camp.”

Minho grinned. “Excellent idea.”

They began driving immediately. Minho let Jisung handle the music selection, which resulted in a strange mixture of Twice, various 80s music, and random indie songs that all sounded the same to Minho, but Jisung swore up and down they were all completely different.

There was never a dull moment; every second was filled with Jisung singing along to every song. Minho joined him when he recognized a song or two, and before either of them knew it, they were practically screaming along to the music.

At one point, when the voice coming through the speaker was singing about how _there's something about the summer,_ Jisung gasped. “Oh my god,” he said.

“What?” Minho asked, a little alarmed by the sudden outburst.

“We _have_ to stop for ice cream.”

Minho rolled his eyes but obliged. Fifteen minutes later, they were walking down the sidewalk together, ice cream cones in hand.

“This was a good idea,” Jisung said. “Not going to summer camp, I mean.”

“Glad you approve,” Minho said with a laugh.

“What are we gonna do when we get there?” Jisung asked. “To the beach, I mean.”

Minho thought for a moment. They'd been driving all day, and it would be a few more hours before they'd reach their destination. He said as such to Jisung.

“I think we should spend a whole day at the beach,” Jisung said.

“That means we’ll need a place to stay for the night,” Minho said. “I don't know for sure, but I bet we can find a shitty motel that won't cost us much.”

“Or we could sleep on the beach,” Jisung said, his eyes lighting up.

Minho rolled his eyes. “Do you want to get arrested?”

Jisung giggled. “Fair enough,” he said. “Shitty motel it is.”

It didn't take them long to find a place to stay. It just so happened that shitty motels were positively everywhere. And as it turned out, they were able to scrape together enough money for one room, one night.

Jisung was getting settled in the bed while Minho was brushing his teeth. When Minho was done, he came out of the bathroom and grabbed one of the pillows from the bed.

“What are you doing?” Jisung asked.

“Sleeping on the floor?” Minho phrased it like a question.

“Absolutely not,” Jisung replied, making grabby hands at Minho. “Get your ass up here. We can share the bed.”

•••••

Jisung did not think that through. At all.

For starters, the bed was tiny. As soon as Minho crawled into the bed next to him, Jisung had, on instinct, wrapped his limbs around Minho in a loose embrace, but that didn't really change anything. It was still cramped.

Secondly, Jisung couldn't stop thinking of the way he and Minho had left things the previous summer. Neither of them had brought it up throughout the day, but it was all Jisung could think about.

Especially now.

It was two in the morning and there Jisung was, wide awake, with a sleeping Minho pressed flush against him. As he lay there, trying to shut off his brain, one thought persisted in his mind: what if he shouldn't have kissed Minho? He didn't regret it, not really; he'd liked Minho for nearly as long as he knew him, but the fact that neither of them had brought it up yet discouraged him greatly. Before drifting off to sleep, Jisung promised himself he'd say something to Minho before the end of their trip, before they parted ways as they always did.

He didn't know if he'd be able to stand seeing Minho leave otherwise.

•••••

They rose with the sun the next morning, much to Jisung's dismay. Of course, he didn't mention why he was so exhausted; he just accepted his fate until Minho suggested they find someplace that sold coffee, which was probably the best idea he'd ever had. Thirty minutes and two iced coffees later, they were back on the road.

By 10AM, the beach was in view. Jisung was practically vibrating with excitement. They drove around until they found the least crowded beach they could, at which point they finally stopped. They had reached their destination.

“You ready?” Minho asked Jisung, a smile tugging at the corner of his lips.

“Absolutely,” Jisung replied. The two of them got out of the car and dug through the trunk to find everything they would need before stepping out together into the sand.

“Let's swim,” Jisung suggested, his eyes aglow with happiness.

Minho's eyes widened for a split second before he said, “Um, yeah, sure.”

Jisung frowned. “What's wrong?” He asked.

“…It's stupid,” Minho said. It was only when Jisung raised his eyebrows questioningly that he added, “I've never actually swam in the ocean before. It kinda freaks me out. You know, because sharks and stuff.”

Jisung giggled. “I promise I won't let any sharks get you,” he said as he held out his hand for Minho to take. “Come on, please? It'll be fun.”

Minho took a deep breath. “Okay,” he said and grasped Jisung's hand, allowing himself to be guided into the water.

He was knee-deep before he started panicking.

Jisung noticed immediately the way Minho's intake of breath seemed quicker, sharper; and the way Minho's hand trembled in his grip. “Hey,” Jisung said to Minho, “it's okay. I've got you. We don't have to go any farther if you don't want to.”

Minho nodded stiffly. He looked a little pale. Jisung guided him back towards the shore, where they sat down in the sand. Jisung put his arms around Minho and held him close. “I'm proud of you,” Jisung said quietly. “You faced your fear.”

“I ruined swimming,” Minho argued.

“You didn't ruin anything,” Jisung reassured him. “We're here because of you, remember? Whatever we end up doing is gonna be the best thing we've ever done.”

Minho smiled. “Thanks, Jisungie,” he said.

After that, they spent the better part of two hours collecting seashells (Jisung screamed when one of the shells he attempted to grab turned out to be a very much alive crab; Minho practically fell over laughing). When they got hungry, they walked to a nearby burger place and filled up on burgers, fries, and milkshakes. Once they were back on the beach, they walked around aimlessly until nightfall. It was then that Jisung suggested they look at the stars.

“We’ll be able to see so many out here,” he said. “It'll be fun.

Minho complied easily, and before long the two of them were stretched out on their beach towels, looking up at the sky and laying close enough to each other that their shoulders were brushing against each other. It felt like Jisung had been touched with a live wire wherever Minho touched him.

“That one’s Hercules,” Minho said, pointing to the sky. “See it?”

Jisung shook his head, so Minho took Jisung's hand and guided it towards the stars. Jisung knew his face was on fire, and he was certain that Minho did too. “Now do you see it?” Minho asked.

“I see it,” Jisung replied. His face was still burning.

“Jisungie…” Minho said, sitting up and leaning over Jisung, “are you okay?”

“Of course,” Jisung squeaked. “W-why wouldn't I be?”

Rather than answering, Minho leaned down and kissed Jisung. It started out slow, but it quickly became more deep and passionate as they both realized just how long they'd been waiting for this moment. They only broke away when air became necessary.

Minho's lips were bright red. “God, I've been waiting a long time to do that,” he said with a small laugh.

“I thought about you all year,” Jisung blurted. “I mean, I always do that, but the last time I saw you I kissed you and I just couldn't stop thinking—”

Minho cut Jisung off with another kiss pressed to his lips. “I thought about it too,” he said. “All the time.”

Minho kissed him again, and again, and again. Jisung was melting. A summer had never been more perfect as this, he thought.

Minho laughed. “You said it,” he said, “I agreed.”

Jisung blushed, not having realized he'd spoken aloud. It was in that moment, however, that he realized just how right he was. He had never been so happy as he was in this moment.

It didn't matter what tomorrow would bring. For now, they had each other.

**Author's Note:**

> guys I have a [tumblr](https://bbaileyb00.tumblr.com/) now, feel free to come yell at me :)))


End file.
